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15 April
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Digital Assets Bill Passes Through Virginia Legislature

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

It’s a thought no parent wants to contemplate – losing a child. Nevertheless, if this unfortunate and tragic incident occurs, you need to pick up the pieces and try to get your child’s estate in order. Fortunately, the Virginia Legislature took a step to make the process a little easier with the passage of HB 1752. This law affords parents of deceased minors access to their social media accounts. The law enables a personal representative of a deceased minor to assume the deceased minor's terms of service agreement for a digital account with an Internet service provider, communications service provider, or other online account service provider for the purposes of consenting to and obtaining the disclosure of the deceased minor's communications and subscriber records, according to the Virginia Legislative Information System. The digital provider is obligated to provide access to the personal representative within 60 days from the receipt of a...

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25 March
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Alert: New Estate Tax Laws and How Portability May Impact Your Beneficiaries

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

If you have estate planning documents that are more than a year old, you probably need to have them reviewed by an estate planning attorney. Why? Because 2 big changes (among others) were made to the estate tax laws. Here’s the scoop… Congress set the estate tax exemption amount “permanently” at 5 million indexed for inflation. The 2014 exemption amount is $5,340,000. This means with good foundational estate planning a married couple can shelter $10,680,000 from federal estate taxes. Most people are well below this 10 million dollar figure but that doesn’t mean there is no tax issue. Although a good estate plan should not be structured solely on tax implications (see Creative Estate Planning for Clients No Longer Subject to the Federal Estate Tax), your estate plan could be subject to unnecessary income taxes/capital gains taxes for your beneficiaries. The reason why leads...

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20 March
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Pros and Cons of Revocable Transfer-on-Death Deeds in Virginia

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

If you are contemplating what will happen to your home, or other real property (i.e. land) in Virginia, after you pass on, there is a unique type of deed that you may want to consider for estate planning purposes. It’s called a transfer-on-death deed (a.k.a. beneficiary deed). A transfer-on-death deed allows you to execute a deed that names a beneficiary – could be a relative, spouse or close friend - who will obtain title to the property when you pass away without having to go through probate. Virginia recognizes these types of deeds. In fact, transfer-on-death deeds are codified under under Virginia Code § 64.2-624. The statute states that “an individual may transfer property to one or more beneficiaries effective at the transferor's death by a transfer on death deed.” The statute goes on to state that this type of deed is revocable, even if the deed or another instrument contains...

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14 March
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Bobby’s Estate Planning Mythbuster: Access to Assets Held in a Revocable Trust

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

Myth: If you set up a revocable trust, you lose control and access to your assets. Truth: You have just as much control - if not more – when you create a revocable trust and transfer assets to the trust. A trust is basically a contract between a trustmaker (i.e. you - the person who creates the trust), a trustee (i.e. one who controls the trust; can be you or someone else) and beneficiaries (i.e. the people entitled to benefit from the trust). As the grantor, you determine how the trust will be operated by the trustee and who benefits. There are numerous benefits to establishing a revocable trust, but one of the most attractive benefits is maintaining total control over the assets in the trust while you’re alive. This allows you to better plan for a potential disability and gives you the power to decide when you give up control over those...

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03 March
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The Tax and Retirement Advantages of Employee Stock Ownership Plans for Small Business Owners

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

If you’re a small business owner, you may want to consider implementing an employee stock ownership plan (a.k.a. ESOP). An ESOP can provide an incentive for employees while reducing your corporate tax burden, according to thinkadvisor.com. Another distinct advantage is the potential bridge ESOPs create for you to retire comfortably. How? Well, you can gradually sell your business to your employees while, in the process, defer recognition of any gain you make on the sale many years down the road. This is what’s known as a Section 1042 transaction and can allow you to defer taxable gain on the sale of your business indefinitely. But before we get into those benefits, let’s review some basics about ESOPs. They were pretty much unknown until 1974. At that point, they started to grow and about 11,000 companies now have these plans, covering over 13 million employees. An ESOP is basically a trust created...

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20 February
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Generation X Missing the Financial Boat by Not Working with an Advisor

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

A new study published by the Insured Retirement Institute revealed from surprising, and disturbing, statistics. Over 75 percent of individuals categorized as “Generation X” (i.e. people with birth dates from the early 1960s to the early 1980s) do not consult with financial advisors to help them plan for retirement. Even more shocking is the fact that this is a sharp increase of 63 percent back in 2012. The study delved into different income levels and found that 65 percent of people in Generation X who make $75,000 or more in income, do not have a financial advisor. This is a big problem since many Gen Xers are missing the proverbial financial boat. For example, the study showed that people who do have a relationship with a financial advisor save more money and are much better prepared for retirement. In fact, in average, people who worked with a financial advisor had $90,400 in...

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20 January
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The Government Grim Reaper Wants Your Money – States With Terrifying Death Tax Laws

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

Some people think the estate tax is simply a creature of the federal government. Wrong. There are numerous states – 16, along with Maryland and D.C., to be exact – that impose an estate tax. Even more surprising is that some states actually impose an estate tax on estates that are valued at less than one million dollars. At less than one million dollars, these state-enforced estate taxes will be a problem for many middle class families. If you’re frugal and have good savings practices, a middle class family has the ability to save and wind up with an estate close to one million dollars, or more. With proper planning these state estate taxes can be deferred, minimized and potentially eliminated. The taxing authorities look at all of your assets when determining the value of your estate with some surprising valuation methods. For example, many people believe that proceeds from...

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09 January
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Long-Term Wealth Protection Available Through Dynasty Trusts and Domestic Asset Protection Trusts

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

A dynasty trust can be set up and utilized to pass asserts on to multiple generations of descendants while paying very little in taxes. Here’s a big advantage: dynasty trusts have no expiration date and there are no required minimum distributions. This means the assets in the trust may grow for an unlimited number of future generations. Dynasty trusts can be set up in numerous states. However, some states offer stronger protections for these types of trusts. For example, Delaware offers more protections from creditors trying to access the trust assets and potential exclusion of assets if a trustee gets divorced. In South Dakota, rules are in place that provide more control over investment decisions to the trustee, which makes it easier for an individual to set up their own trust company rather than rely on a bank trustee, according to Bloomberg.com. In Virginia, there are numerous statutes in...

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28 December
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Take Care of Your Furry Loved Ones – The Benefits of a Pet Trust

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

Many people who own pets consider them to be a member of the family, much like a child. When planning your estate, you consider your children and make plans to pass on assets and ensure your children are protected. The same logic applies to your pets – you want to make sure there is someone designated to take care of them when you are no longer able to. Many pet owners just assume that their remaining family members will continue to care for their beloved pet. As the years go by, your surviving spouse may not be able to handle the additional care of a pet. Even if they want to help with the care of your pets, your adult children may not have the ability to take care of them or may live in an apartment complex that does not permit pets. This is where a...

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20 December
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Firearm Owners Should Consider Gun Trusts

Posted by Bobby Feisee
in Bobby's Blog

The Second Amendment is cherished in our country and millions of Americans are proud gun owners. So what will happen to your firearm when you pass away? The fact that is that a firearm is not your typical asset that can simply be transferred to a loved one. In fact, if you pass away without a will, there are federal transfer requirements that have to be satisfied before a loved one can take ownership of your firearm. For example, to transfer a registered firearm, the owner must get approval from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, along with paying a tax. However, there is an estate planning tool that can allow you to avoid some of these transfer requirements - a gun trust. Gun trusts are usually utilized for weapons regulated by two federal laws: the National Firearms Act of 1934 and Title II of the Gun...

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